The game of football as we know it today was established in, and exported from England. For example, football was introduced to Brazil, by an Englishman, in 1885. English teachers and their students held matches in Tokyo, Japan, in 1871. British soldiers, sailors and settlers took the game with them to the four corners of the world The first football club to be established outside England was in Boston in 1862. The first international game of football was held in 1872 with a match between Scotland and England. The first international match held outside Great Britain was between the USA and Canada in 1885. According to a 2001 FIFA survey, football is now played by more than 240 million people in more than 200 countries worldwide. Billions watch both local and international matches live and on television. The estimated television audience for the 2006 World Cup, held in Germany and won by Italy, is up to 60 million viewers for some matches. Records of the movement and development of individual sports
were not a focus for historians in days gone by, so there is no
definitive proof of the ancient origin of our current sport of
football. It is just possible that the English simply
recognized what many other cultures had experienced, it is fun
to kick a football around a paddock!
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